Amanda Etchison - Page 3

Walking into the Vern Riffe Center's Studio One Theatre Friday night, one felt less like an audience member settling into a seat in a performance hall and more like a guest stepping into a stranger's living room. It was in this environment, a New York City apartment overlooking Central Park, that Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner Terrence McNally's 'Mothers and Sons' made its regional premiere.

The translation of art from the stage to the screen is often viewed with a healthy dose of skepticism. Yet an annual event by the Ohio State Department of Dance proves that the fusion of dance and film is far from two-dimensional. "Dance@30FPS," a presentation of dance films from around the world, was hosted on OSU's campus in the Wexner Center for the Arts' Film/Video Theater on Feb. 11.

Upon first glance, the sterile, white sets that greet the audience once the curtain rises on BalletMet's "Carmen.maquia" might have many theatergoers double-checking their programs. Indeed, the barren stage, interrupted by amorphous masses that appear to be constructed from thin layers of crepe paper, in no way resembles the streets of Seville, Spain. Yet it is on this blank canvas that the dancers of BalletMet create color through movement and emotion, effectively painting a vibrant, Pablo Picasso-esque portrait of humanity.

From the stomping of rhythmic footsteps reverberating unaccompanied through the darkness to the lyrical interpretation of biblical verses that merged multimedia art with movement, the Ohio State Department of Dance's "Winter Concert" showcased nine works laced together by the common threads of intensity and emotion.

Hundreds of Columbus-area dancers are set to take the stage this weekend at the Open Call dance competition, showcasing a variety of styles in hopes of making connections with national talent agencies and winning scholarships.

The wooden deck and porthole windows that adorn the Vern Riffe Center's Studio One Theatre might cause landlubbers' legs to wobble a bit while finding their seats, but audience members need not fear seasickness when they come to watch CATCO's regional premiere of "Peter and the Starcatcher."

Students from Ohio State University's Department of Dance took to the Capitol Theatre stage Saturday night for the annual Dance Downtown event, performing pieces that touched upon myriad topics from climate change to the infusion of art and movement.

The issue of sanitation in a Norwegian town might not seem like the most interesting subject for a play presented to an audience of college students, but the Ohio State Department of Theatre's production of Henrik Ibsen's "An Enemy of the People" surprisingly touches on contemporary questions still prevalent in our modern world.

Halloween isn't always just about candy and kids in costumes -- it also often calls to mind the supernatural fantasies that haunt our nightmares. Last weekend, BalletMet delved into the spine-chilling story of Bram Stoker's "Dracula," just in time for the ghoulish holiday.

From its Broadway debut in 1979 to its revival starring Bradley Cooper just last year, Bernard Pomerance's Tony Award-winning play "The Elephant Man" has challenged audiences through the decades to think beyond physical appearances and sympathize with others' plights. Now, this message comes to the Columbus stage with CATCO's production -- the first of its 2015-16 season -- of this dramatic classic.

"Good Kids" provides the spark necessary to begin conversations regarding the choices one makes in his or her life and how those decisions impact the future, and leaves audience members with much to think about long after they leave the theater.

The world premiere of BalletMet's "Breaking Ballet" thrust audiences into a world where the music of Cyndi Lauper, the tradition of classical ballet and the serendipity of urban romance converged on the same stage within a single two-hour program.

Summer days are rapidly drifting away, but the Columbus Children's Theatre pre-professional company is striving to make the remaining summer nights a blast from the past with its production of "Grease."

In its production of Neil LaBute's “Reasons To Be Pretty,” Columbus' Shots in the Dark Independent Theatre Company is set to delve into the aspects of close relationships that are often less than beautiful.

Humid summer nights spent grilling and mowing lawns in a subdivision might initially seem like an odd concept for a musical, but a new production performed by Columbus' own Shots in the Dark Theatre Company took inspiration from these often-mundane surroundings to create a new musical that explores the satirical and sometimes sinister aspects of the great American Dream.

A new musical is coming to town--one that explores the themes of love, passion and the suburban American Dream, wittily played out under the golden glow of neighborhood streetlights.

Featuring a stage decorated with an upright piano, mismatched chairs and colorful wooden tables, the Palace Theatre's crystal-draped ceilings faded away to become a cozy pub straight off the streets of Dublin, Ireland, during the touring production of 'Once,' which opened in Columbus on June 9.

This summer, the Columbus theater scene is full of shows that are sure to engage, inspire and entertain. From dance to live music to a variety of local productions, here is your comprehensive list of theater happenings on Columbus' summer stages.

The Fourth of July might still be several months away, but the Ohio Theatre's halls were bursting with patriotic pride last weekend for the works of several American artists celebrated in BalletMet's performance of "American Masters."

From the moment the house lights dim and the curtain rises, audiences of BalletMet's "Cinderella" are transported to an imaginative world of fairytales-a place where princes and princesses reside, fairy godmothers have magical powers, and woodland creatures and nymphs dance and play.